Middlesex county cricket preview: New signings, released players, fixtures, predictions
EXPRESS SPORT is previewing the county cricket season which starts on Friday and now we take a look at Middlesex.
Adam Voges will be available for 13 County Championship matches this season for Middlesex
Middlesex
Last season
CC D1- 1st
RLODC- Group stage, 6th.
T20- quarter-final, lost to Northants
New signings
None
Players out
Andrew Balbirnie (released)
Brendon McCullum is back for Middlesex in this year's T20 Blast
Daniel Vettori will strengthen what is already an outstanding coaching unit at Middlesex
Cameron Steel (Durham)
Max Holden (Northants)- loan until end of June
James Harris (Kent) - loan
Overseas stars
Adam Voges (Aus)- 13 CC games and whole RLODC
Brendon McCullum (NZ) – T20 blast
Club captain
James Franklin
Dawid Malan (RLODC and T20)
Key man
Toby Roland-Jones – the seamer took the historic hat-trick which won Middlesex the title last season and he will be vital again if England don’t fancy him just yet.
England radar
Nick Gubbins – some were calling for a winter call-up for the opener and if he matches last season’s efforts, the selectors would find it hard to ignore him again.
Young gun
Stevie Eskinazi – scored some valuable runs in the title run-in last season, including an unbeaten 78 in the second innings of the momentous game against Yorkshire at Lord’s.
This season's predictions
CC D1- 4th
RLODC- group stage
T20 Blast- group stage
Toby Roland-Jones will be vital to Middlesex's County Championship defence
Last year’s County Championship winners will be battling again this season but defending a title is 10 times harder because everyone wants to beat the champions.
They will go into the campaign with almost the exact same squad as their 2016 triumph and if they can keep their top stars fit, they will be strong contenders.
Despite making the quarter-finals last year, the T20 Blast hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for Middlesex and they will narrowly miss out on the knockout stages – unless Brendon McCullum fires like we know he can and new coach Daniel Vettori gets his message across.
First fixture
CC- Hampshire away, Friday 14th April
RLODC- Sussex home, Thursday 27th April
T20 Blast- Gloucestershire away, Friday 7th July